As part of the National Endocrine Disruptor Strategy, the French Anses has assessed the potential of endocrine disruption for human health of resorcinol. As a result of this work, the Anses’s expertise has shown that resorcinol impacts thyroid function, leading to deleterious effects, particularly in pregnant women, which, for the Agency, meets the conditions for proposing it as a proven endocrine disruptor.
The Anses carries out expert reports on the dangerousness and risks of chemical substances under the REACH Regulation and proposes appropriate management measures in this context. This regulation stipulates that substances with obvious endocrine disrupting properties can be identified as Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC). As part of France’s National Strategy on Endocrine Disruptors (SNPE), the Agency assesses substances with potentially harmful effects on endocrine systems. The effect of resorcinol on the synthesis of thyroid hormones was examined in this context.
Resorcinol is used in the manufacture of tyres, rubber products, adhesives and industrial resins. It is also used in certain cosmetics and hygiene products (hair dyes, mascara for professional use), as an antioxidant for food products such as shrimps and as an antiseptic in the composition of certain medicines.
Serious human health effects of concern
On the basis of the available experimental and clinical data, Anses experts have established that this substance fulfils all the hazard criteria necessary to be defined as an endocrine disruptor according to the WHO criteria and the 2013 recommendations of the European Commission, namely :
• an endocrine mode of action: strong evidence of an effect of resorcinol on the regulation of …
